Reviews

GoldenEye: Rogue Agent

The biggest wrinkle, supposedly, is the fact that you're a bad guy. The game is supposed to reward you for playing evilly, such as when you take human shields, throw enemies from high places, get headshots, and a few other nefarious activities. Funnily enough, these acts don't strike me as very different from what a normal video game hero might do -- Metal Gear Solid 3's Snake does all of the above. The only real reward for "evil" deeds is bonus points, which is okay but not really much of a motivator in the greater scheme of things. Perhaps there's a limit to how evil one can be and still receive a T rating. There's certainly a limit to how long I can bother trying to act evil for no good reason, when it's easier just to shoot people dead and move on.

Silver Linings in Golden Guns

GoldenEye 007 was all about the multiplayer, so EA has paid a lot of attention to Rogue Agent's. There's a tad over 20 maps, tons of options to tweak, and a decent selection of gameplay modes for up to eight players total. Online play worked smoothly and without incident, and I actually started having some fun capping people in the head and cooperating in team vs. team struggles. It's too bad the weaknesses of the single player spill over here. The turning is still laggy and the lack of mobility (slow walking speed, lack of jumping) becomes downright aggravating. Rogue Agent's multiplayer is extremely slow-paced -- I'd recommend playing with the speed power-ups always turned on. Still, what's there is solid, if as generally uninspired as the rest of the game.

The same goes for the graphics. The engine ambles along at a leisurely 30 frames per second, showing sights that aren't especially detailed or, conversely, offensive. They're just there. The audio is no different. A few evil one-liners might have livened things up a bit, but GoldenEye is obstinately silent. My theory is he's a bit embarrassed about the game. It probably sounded better to him on paper. That's been my experience, anyway.

DON'T GET THIS GUN! It makes you even slower!

Imposter

I was going to say that inspiration was the most important thing Rogue Agent lacks, but it actually has a little in the form of its terrific premise. It should be fun playing as a Bond villain -- hell, it should be a blast. It's not, here. Rogue Agent is a lackluster package of average single-player and slightly better multiplayer. Unless you're a huge and/or irrational Bond nut, it offers nothing that competing games don't do better. That's a shame, because the premise is grand.